They had been traveling with each other for a while. What started as him wanting to help her while she was ill had steadily turned into wanting to travel together for the day, to a week, to a month now.... The snowy landscape they were in when they met had long since transitioned into just cold and wet. Saoirse would wonder to herself whether she should be the one leaving, but she found that... she wasn't really interested in doing so. It was a strange feeling for her. Normally she was more aloof, her deafness creating a barrier that prevented her from really connecting with anyone.

So it was unusual that she found herself charmed by this overly chivalrous brute. He always tried to accommodate her lack of hearing, but never treated her as if she were less capable than a normal wild dog. She wasn't entirely sure how to react to that.

He was easy to get along with though, and she found herself smiling and teasing him more and more often. All of which was taken good-naturedly by him. She found herself observing him when he did simple little things. The way his brow furrowed in thought, the way he slept on his back with his mouth wide open (she was particularly amused by that), the way his tail always seemed to brush her whenever he passed by, the large laughs that she imagined bellowed out of him when he was entertained (and never before had she wished so much that she could actually hear)....

When Saoirse finally did realize what she was doing, she was confused and unnerved. Why did she care about these things? So he was kind to her, cared about what she said, seemed positively delighted when she didn't push him away.... She was a lone wolf, and she... she really didn't know how to be around someone else. Didn't know what it was like to have a friend.

Was that what they were? It felt like more than that, but she didn't have anything else to go off of.

Unbeknownst to her, Anrothan had long since decided that yes, he wanted her as a mate. He didn't want to force her though, and that step was something that both parties had to take. So he chose to simply accompany her as a friend, a guardian, unless she showed any interest as well.

It was easier to communicate with her now too, after practicing day in and day out. Now it felt like second nature to him. There were some days where he'd forget about her deafness even, and he had yet to really anger her. (He hoped he never incurred her wrath. He'd seen her icy, frigid fury aimed at a hyena that had crossed their path at one point. He wouldn't have let anything happen to her, but apparently he hadn't needed to worry. She had enough of a glower on her to chase away the devil.)

Walking beside her now, Anrothan took a side-glance at her, eyes trailing from her ears to her tail. He disregarded that he was checking her out - how uncouth, why he'd never - and tilted his head slightly when he noticed that she seemed troubled by something. Should he ask?

He was about to do just that when the sound of crying faded in across the wind, and not the sad kind of crying. Coming to a halt, the brown male swiveled his head around, trying to pinpoint the noise.

The lack of accompanying footsteps are what made her pause. Turning around, Saoirse stared in confusion as Anrothan seemed to be listening intently to something. Awkwardly tilting her ears back, she wondered what he could be hearing. A few quick sniffs, and she determined that there didn't seem to be anything wrong. No one was nearby, no slinking paws vibrating against the ground, and it made her uneasy knowing that there was something there that she couldn't sense.

Suddenly, he turned back to her and gestured off to the right. "This way!" he said, before taking off in a sprint. "Wa-wait!" Blue-toed paws scrambled after him, a little bit afraid of what she would find when they got to their destination, and now wishing she HAD separated from him.

They weaved in between the trees, and she had a split second to register the smell of water before they burst out next to the gushing river. Was he thirsty? He couldn't possibly be wanting to swim in this. It was far too treacherous.

So she was entirely taken by surprise when he dove forward and landed with a mighty splash in the river.

"ANROTHAN!" Shock and horror fell over her, chilling her blood and making her heart drop to her feet. What was he THINKING?! Scrambling at the edge of the water, she gazed frantically over the water, willing him to come back. It was as she was doing this that she spotted it. The small, pale-furred cub was gripping desperately at the branch it had caught itself on, mouth open in what she assumed were panicked wails.

And it was stuck in the middle of the river, half drowned and looking like it wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer.

Saoirse first felt guilt. Here she'd been, unable to hear this child's cries for help, and about ready to leave because she was afraid of whatever had called Anrothan's attention, when he'd clearly been trying to help someone. The next emotion she felt was relief, when said wild dog popped out of the water near the cub.

This water was much stronger than the lake he'd saved Saoirse from. He fought against the current, trying to focus on the tiny kit ahead of him, and was triumphant when he managed to snag onto the branch.

But his victory was short-lived. No sooner had he grabbed the cub between his teeth when the branch finally dislodged from between the rocks it had been caught on. With a whine, he fell backwards into the water and had to kick himself back up to the surface. Heaving himself forward, Anrothan kicked blindly towards where he hoped the side of the river was, trying to keep his nose and the cub up and out of the unforgiving current.

His side hit a boulder then, pain flaring down his spine and almost causing him to drop the cub in his mouth. He used it to his advantage though, clawing at the rock until he could safely perch the cub on it.

He had enough time to see a lithe cheetah female come flying out of the trees in front of him, barreling towards what was clearly her cub, before his paws slipped from their hold and he went tumbling back down into the river. Pain flared against his head as he knocked it against the boulder he was just clinging to, and then everything went black.

Saoirse had been following along the side of the river, bounding across the soggy grass to try and keep up. For as small as she was, she was thankfully fast on her feet, and because of this, she was able to watch as he deposited the cub to safety. Her relief was short-lived though, as she screamed when he was pulled back under.

And didn't come back up.

((*had to split this into 2 parts because it ended up so long* xD;; To be continued in part 2~))